Press ponder Halutz resignation

Israeli papers consider the motivation for chief of staff Lt-Gen Dan Halutz' resignation and its possible consequences.

They wonder whether the positions of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defence Minister Amir Peretz are tenable. One predicts that Mr Halutz will not be the only high-level casualty over the war in Lebanon.

A Palestinian paper sees the resignation as an admission that Israel lost the war.

EDITORIAL IN ISRAEL'S YEDIOT AHARONOT

Halutz will not be the only one to fall on his sword over the war in Lebanon. The Israeli public will not leave the prime minister and the defence minister alone. Olmert and Peretz will stand down - unless they find a "manipulative move" that has not been tried yet. This is the twilight of the current government.

EDITORIAL IN ISRAEL'S HA'ARETZ

Halutz' letter of resignation marks the end of an inglorious series of pretences thrust upon the Israeli public by those running the state since the end of the second Lebanon war. The truth is that the chief of staff was kicked out by the general staff, the soldiers, the press and those who conducted the inquiries.

DAN KASPIT IN ISRAEL'S MA'ARIV

The question was not whether he would resign but when. Since the end of the war Dan Halutz has resembled a lost plane flying at an immense height. Will Halutz become a kamikaze and try to take others to the bottom of the sea? This is still not clear yet.

AMIR RAPAPORT IN ISRAEL'S MA'ARIV

The fact that Halutz did not even bother to inform Peretz that he was about to step down shows the extent to which the minister of defence is simply not rated in the IDF. Graver still is the total lack of contact between the prime minister and the defence minister. It is impossible to sleep in peace when the Olmert-Peretz pairing holds the most sensitive jobs.

HAFITH AL-BARGHUTHI IN PALESTINIAN AL-HAYAT AL-JADIDAH

His resignation has come to underline that the Israeli army was defeated militarily in the war, but it also means that there are those who are taking responsibility. However, we did not hear a single word of Palestinian self-criticism. I wish that one Palestinian official would have the courage and conscience to resign.

EDITORIAL IN LONDON-BASED ARABIC AL-QUDS AL-ARABI

Halutz' resignation is the first Israeli official acknowledgement of defeat in the Lebanese war and the end of Israel's obstinacy. Halutz has entered history as the first victim of the Israeli war in Lebanon. And Defence Minister Amir Peretz may well be the next one on the list.

ALUF BENN IN ISRAEL'S HA'ARETZ

Ehud Olmert has no intention of resigning. He wants to fight for his political survival. From this point on, Israel finds itself in a period of leadership vacuum, characterised by a very thin line of leadership and very little content.

BBC Monitoring selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.